Leydig Cell Hyperplasia and the Maintenance of Bone Volume

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LEPROSY
^
Volume 68, Number 3
Printed in the U.S.A.
(ISSN 0148-916X)
Leydig Cell Hyperplasia and the Maintenance of Bone
Volume: Bone Histomorphometry and Testicular
Histopathology in 29 Male Leprosy Autopsy Cases'
Satoshi Ishikawa, Mutsue Mizushima, Mutsuhiro Furuta,
Asako Ishikawa, and Kenji Kawamura 2
Hypogonadism is a major factor in
decreased bone content among males
(7. s, 20, 22, 23)
and there are many men with
hypogonadism that is not diagnosed until
fracture ( 1 . 2). Hypogonadism is well known
in male leprosy patients and is attributed to
testicular damage by orchitis (14, 16, 17 ). Reports on osteoporosis in hypogonadal leprosy patients, however, are scarce. We previously studied serum free testosterone and
bone mineral density (BMD) with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in male
leprosy patients and speculated that osteoporosis in male leprosy patients is a secondary condition caused by gonadal dysfunction (11, 12).
In this study, using histopathologic and
histomorphometric methods, we explored
this hypothesis by comparing the degree of
testicular damage to the degree of trabecular bone loss in autopsy cases. We are aware
of no other study comparing the histomorphometric changes of vertebral trabecular
bone to the pathologic testicular changes in
cases of male leprosy.
' Received for publication on 16 September 1999.
Accepted for publication in revised form on 7 June
2000.
S. Ishikawa, M.D., Ph.D., Department of Rehabilitation, Higashi Osaka Hospital, 1-7-22 Chuo, Joto-ku,
Osaka 536-0005, Japan. M. Mizushima, M.D., Ph.D.,
Department of Pathology, Gifu Prefectural Tajimi Hospital, Tajimi, Japan. M. Furuta, M.D., Ph.D., Department of Pathology, National Leprosarium Oku
Komyo-En, Okayama, Japan. A. Ishikawa, M.D., Department of Anesthesiology, National Leprosarium
Nagashima Aisei-En, Okayama, Japan. K. Kawamura,
M.D., Ph.D., Department of Physical Therapy, School
of Health Science, Kibi International University, Takahashi, Japan.
Reprint requests to Dr. Satoshi Ishikawa at the
above address or FAX 81-6-6939-7474;
email: wisdom99@kcc.zaq.ne.jp
258
MATERIALS AND METHODS
We used 29 mate leprosy autopsy patients (54 to 79 years of age, average 66.5
years) and six age-matched, male nonleprosy autopsy patients as controls (52 to
69 years of age, average 61.5 years). All
leprosy patients were residents of OkuKomyo-En Leprosarium, Okayama, Japan,
for at least 20 years, some for as long as 50
years, and ali were lepromatous, including
one with active disease. The nonleprosy
controls were patients at a nearby general
hospital. All patients, leprosy and nonleprosy, died of causes not related to conditions known to affect bone metabolism.
They ali died within 1 month after their final hospitalization. Cases of liver cirrhosis
or diabetes mellitus were not included due
to a possible association with osteoporosis.
The leprosy patients had been treated with
corticosteroids in periods of acute exacerbation due to other conditions. Seventeen of
the 29 patients had received 10 mg to 1850
mg of corticosteroids in the form of prednisolone, including tablets, injections, ointment, or ophthalmic solution (clinicai data
is shown in Table 1). Gynecomastia, low
body mass index (BMI) ( 15 ), difficulty with
gait, or massive doses of steroids were suggestive of osteoporosis, to the point of affecting remodeling of the trabecular bone.
Testes. Testes of the patients were
weighed and fixed in 10% formalin during
autopsy (Table 2). They were then
processed for paraffin sections and stained
with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E). Three
histologic patterns were seen: a) nodular
Leydig cell hyperplasia (Fig. 1A) with or
without sperm in the seminiferous tubules,
b) total scarring (Fig. 2A), and c) no remarkable Leydig cell proliferation with or
68, 3^Ishikawa, et al.: Leydig Cell Hyperplasia^259
TABLE 1. Clinical characteristics of study patients.
Steroid
at
Immediate cause^Age
Case^Age at^Age at
BMIa^
(yrs.) Gynecomastia ADL'' usage (mg)
of death^vasectomy
no.^death (yrs.)^onset (yrs.)
Leprosy patients
830.125
Pneumonia^20.0
40
1
70
35
Pancreatic necrosis^20.0
2a
54
28
37
Pyelonephri ti s^22.2
3
61
Myocardial infarction 21.5
4
58
14
1489.5
Bronchial pneumonia 23.5
22
5
60
155
45
Lobar pneumonia^20.8
6
78
Airway obturation^24.5
7
63
25
Pancreatic cancer^23.4
8
66
22
(+)
25
Gastric cancer^19.9
9
72
33
Pneumonia^19.4
10
79
40
219
11
68
34
Suicide^22.0
243
12
20
Tracheal cancer^22.6
68
28
17
Gastric cancer^20.3
13
70
Colon cancer^13.7
14
71
23
324.2
Rectal cancer^21.0
15
74
26
855
16
Gastric cancer^20.3
68
29
124.875
Gastric sarcoma^20.7
17
56
18
Pyothorax^13.5
18
60
13
945
Lymphosarcoma^15.1
60
12
19
1679.5
26
70
24
Lymphosarcoma^21.6
20
22
21
15
Suicide^15.6
66
(+)
195
Lung cancer^20.5
22
71
25
722.5
23
Amyloidosis^16.7
70
32
10
74
27
Lung cancer^21.4
24
1850
Lung cancer^18.4
25
65
20
Myocardial infarction 20.4
26
54
13
71
Malignant thymoma^22.6
27
18
91.125
Aortic aneurysm^15.9
28
67
15
591.125
Aortic aneurysm^24.3
22
29
65
15
Control Patients
1
64
Cardiac infarction^21.5
Poisoning^19.5
2
58
Pneumonia^22.9
3
59
Myocardial infarction 17.8
4
52
Intraventricular
5
67
hemorrhage^22.3
6
69
Brain contusion^16.9
a BMI = Body mass index (215. BMI <25; standard) ('').
ADL = Activities of daily living (1 = walking possible; 2 = wheelchair).
Case 2 was the only case of active leprosy at the time of the patient's death.
without sperm. The nodular hyperplasia
pattern was prominent and more widely distributed through out the testes than were the
other two patterns, although it was found in
fewer patients. Since the Leydig cells secrete androgen, the tissue specimens from
leprosy patients were divided into two
groups according to the degree of nodular
hyperplasia of the Leydig cells. The first
group showed remarkable nodular hyperplasia of the Leydig cells (hyperplasia
group, N = 7) (Fig. 1A); the other group
was without nodular hyperplasia of the
Leydig cells (nonhyperplasia group, N =
22). The latter group included patients with
totally scarred testes. We determined testicular atrophy by testicular weight and histology, including evidence of atrophy of the
seminiferous tubules. Scarring and scant
sperm were also considered evidence of atrophy. Table 2 shows the pathological findings. Pituitary glands of four patients
(Cases 16, 23, 25, 26) were also examined
histologically to check for hyperplasia of
the basophilic cells which secrete interstitial cell-stimulating hormone, resulting in
Leydig cell hyperplasia.
Vertebral bone. Bone specimens from
the 2nd or 3rd lumbar vertebral bones in
their frontal plane were decalcified,
260^ International Journal of Leprosy^ 2000
TABLE 2. Testicular pathology and bone histomorphometry.
Bone histomorphometry'
(CO'^ (Cn)°
Testicular histology
Weight
Nodular Totally
Case
scarred
LCa
of
no.^.
testis (g) hyperplasia testis
Sperm
in
testis
BV/TV TbTh^TbN^TbSp BV/TV TbTh^TbN^TbSp
(%)^(.tcm) (/mm) (p.cm)^(%)^(p.cm) (/mm) (imm)
Leprosy patients
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
15.5
2
2
20
2
20.5
20
2
2
11
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
5.5
2
2
2
5
5
2
9.3
5
6
9.5
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+ )
(+)
(+ )
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
(+)
9.69 86.2
16.02 123.7
5.02 59.6
77.6
5.21
4.55 76.6
12.24 95.9
2.71
76.5
8.94 79.9
4.55
90.5
7.92 75.5
5.90 120.6
6.74 77.9
81.1
6.31
3.67 64.5
4.77 104.5
6.63 103.3
18.59 95.5
5.90 77.5
11.18 87.0
10.52 85.4
20.89 148.9
7.37 65.1
14.74 131.1
7.92 64.6
6.67 78.1
9.42 83.8
7.26 63.0
8.03 68.1
8.10 75.2
1.10
1.29
0.84
0.67
0.59
1.28
0.35
1.12
0.50
1.05
0.49
0.87
0.78
0.57
0.46
0.64
1.95
0.76
1.29
1.23
1.40
1.13
1.12
1.23
0.85
1.12
1.15
1.18
1.08
821.8 6.20 66.9
648.5
80.3
1127.5 6.31
1412.3 8.69 97.1
1608.9 3.67 63.7
687.5 19.76 97.6
2744.6 3.63 78.8
813.9 8.72 83.5
1.87 70.9
1900
67.6
877.6 3.41
1922.1 7.00 89.7
1077.1 4.66 86.6
1204.8 5.43 102.8
1696
3.15 74.3
2087.6 7.00 116.9
1453.4 9.82 107.4
418.3 10.70 72.6
1235.9 4.88 65.9
691.1 4.51 103
726.5 8.06 85.8
563.6 8.65 79.5
7.81
60.7
819
758.5 6.89 77.5
751.4 3.52 57.9
1092.7 5.57 83.3
805.9 11.18 89.2
805.1 8.69 78.5
780.2 6.78 65.0
852.6 7.81
86.7
0.93 1012.3
0.79
0.89
0.58
2.02
0.46
1.04
0.26
0.50
0.78
0.54
0.53
0.42
0.60
0.91
1.47
0.74
0.44
0.94
1.09
1.29
0.89
0.61
0.67
1.25
1.11
1.04
0.90
1193.6
1020.9
1673.4
396.4
2093.2
874.0
3720.6
1915.7
1191.4
1773.6
1791.7
2282.5
1552.2
986.2
605.7
1285.0
2180.8
978.0
839.6
716.6
1047.4
1586.5
1411.9
708.4
825.2
893.4
1023.4
0.70
0.94
0.79
1.14
0.63
0.72
1350.9
972.1
1143.2
771.8
1508.5
1291.7
Control Patients
1
2
3
4
5
6
20
22
13
20
15
29
10.81
12.43
9.46
22.73
8.50
13.93
101.0
112.7
92.0
114.6
92.5
120.7
1.07
1.10
1.03
1.98
0.92
1.15
833.4 6.09
794.5 8.54
880.6 9.13
389.7 11.91
995.4 5.28
745.8 7.48
8.75
90.8
114.8
104.4
84.1
104.4
LC = Leydig cell.
'BV/TV = Trabecular bone volume; TbTh = trabecular thickness; TbN = trabecular number; TbSp = trabecular separation.
`Ct = Near the cortex.
° Cn = Center of cancellous bone.
processed for paraffin sections, and stained
with H&E. Each histological section of
bone was photographed at low magnification (x20) in two areas, near the cortex (Ct
area) and from the center of the body of the
bone (Cn area). The thickness of bone trabeculae of the leprosy patients varied from
thin to thick, as shown in Figures 1B and
2B. Thin trabeculae showed remarkable
perforation or discontinuity (Fig. 2B). Thin,
scanty trabeculae with perforation is considered histologic evidence of osteoporosis.
The bone of nonleprosy patients showed
thick, continuous, abundant trabeculae (Fig.
3B). Bone in the hyperplasia group was
characterized by thick, continuous, abundant trabeculae similar to that of the nonleprosy patients.
Measurement. Using the photographs
of trabecular bone, we measured the bone
68, 3^Ishikawa, et al.: Leydig Cell Hyperplasia
^
261
FIG. 1. Microscopy findings of testis and vertebral bone in leprosy patients with Leydig cell hyperplasia. A
= Testis (H&E x20); nodular Leydig cell hyperplasia with scarry stroma. B = Vertebral bone (H&E x40); bone
trabeculae are thick and mostly continuous. Average BV/TV is 12.24%.
volume as the percent trabecular area in total medullary bone (BV/TV), the trabecular
thickness (TbTh), the trabecular number
(TbN), and the trabecular separation (TbSp)
in both arcas (s, ). We compared BV/TV,
TbTh, TbN, and TbSp among the hyperplasia, nonhyperplasia, and control groups. A
low BV/TV, markedly reduced TbTh, few
TbN, and pronounced TbSp indicate osteoporosis. Age matching was done among the
three groups, and the data are shown in
Table 2.
Analysis. Analysis of the trabecular
structure was performed on a Macintosh
computer using the public domain NIH image program written by Wayne Rasband,
which can be obtained as freeware from
http://rsb.info.nih.gov/nih-image/index .html .
Statistical analyses were performed with
StatView 4.5 (Abacus Concepts Inc.,
Berkeley, California, U.S.A.). All values
are expressed as mean ± S.D. unless otherwise indicated. Statistical differences among
groups were evaluated with the Kruskal-
Wallis test or Mann-Whitney test. The relationship between pairs of variables was assessed by Spearman rank correlation analysis; p values of <0.05 were considered stati sticall y significant.
RESULTS
Analysis of trabecular structure. The
differences in BV/TV, TbTh, TbN, and
TbSp among the hyperplasia, nonhyperplasia, and control groups are shown in Table
3. Significant differences were observed in
the average measurements of BV/TV at Ct,
TbTh at Cf and Cn, TbN at Ct, and TbSp at
Ct among the hyperplasia, nonhyperplasia,
and control groups (Table 3; Fig. 4). At Ct,
BV/TV, TbTh, and TbN in the hyperplasia
group matched those of the controls, and
TbSp also matched that of the controls. At
Cn, only TbTh differed; it was significantly
decreased in the hyperplasia group. Testicular weight was significantly lower in the
leprosy patient groups than it was in the
controls. No significant differences in age at
262^International Journal of Lepoosy
^
2000
FIG. 2. Microscopy findings of testis and vertebral bone in nonLeydig cell hyperplasia leprosy patients. A =
Testis (H&E x20); scarry testis; no Leydig cells or seminiferous tubules are evident. B = Vertebral bone (H&E
x40); thin and perforated trabeculae are present. Average BV/TV is 7.35%.
death, BMI, BV/TV at Cn, TbN at Cn or
TbSp at Cn were found. Age at onset of leprosy, age at death, BMI, steroid usage, and
testis weight showed no significant correlation with the BV/TV at Ct (Table 4). Comparison of BV/TV between patients with
testicular atrophy or steroid use and those
without either of these clinicai factors revealed no significant differences. There
were too few cases to compare them statistically with respect to vasectomy, gynecomastia, or gait instability. However, ali
three patients with gynecomastia (Cases 8,
21, and 22) showed nodular Leydig cell hyperplasia.
Pathology of testes. The weight of the
testes of the leprosy patients ranged from
2.0 g to 20.5 g (average 5.73 g), and that of
the control patients ranged from 13.0 g to
22.0 g (average 18.3 g) (Table 2). Testicular
atrophy of the leprosy patients was remarkable, and the difference between the leprosy
patients and the control patients was significant (p <0.001) (Table 3).
Microscopically, testicular scarring was
evident in ali leprosy cases, i.e., in both the
hyperplasia and nonhyperplasia patients,
but it varied widely from totally fibrotic
(Fig. 2A) to largely normal with focal scarring. The testes of 24 leprosy patients
showed seminiferous tubules in varying
numbers, but five of these patients showed
no tubules within scarred tissue (Cases 13,
15, 16, 22, 24). There were no significant
differences in BV/TV between cases of totally scarred testicular atrophy and cases of
nonscarring. Nodular Leydig cell hyperplasia was prominent in the hyperplasia group
(Fig. 1A). Immunohistochemically, using
the avidin-biotin peroxidase complex
(ABC) method, testosterone was positively
stained in hyperplastic Leydig cells (Fig. 5),
showing that hyperplastic Leydig cells secrete testosterone. Spermatozoa were pres-
68, 3^Ishikawa, et al.: Leydig Cell Hyperplasia
^
263
FIG. 3. Microscopy findings of testis and vertebral bone in nonleprosy control patients. A = Testis (H&E
x20); small aggregates of Leydig cell and seminiferous tubules with sperm were normal. B = Vertebral bone
(H&E x40); thick continuous spiculae are present. Average BV/TV is 12.98%.
TABLE 3. Histomorphometric parametersd in the hyperplasiab, nonhyperplasiad, and control
groupsd.
Age at death (yrs.)
BMP (kg/m2)
Testis weight (g)
Ct:^BV/TV (%)
TbTh (gcm)
TbN (/mm)
TbSp (11cm)
Cn: BV/TV (%)
TbTh (p.cm)
TbN (/mm)
TbSp (gcm)
Hyperplasia
(N = 7)
64.9 ± 7.8
18.6 ± 3.8
5.1 ± 6.9
12.2 ± 4.9
100 ± 27
1.2 ± 0.2
767 ± 220
9.1 ±5.6
86 ± 13
1.0 ± 0.5
1092 ± 605
Nonhyperplasia
(N = 22)
67.0 ± 6.3
20.5 ± 2.6
5.9 ± 5.9
7.4 ± 3.5
83± 19
0.9 ± 0.4
1228 ± 566
6.4 ± 2.6
81 ± 16
0.8 ± 0.3
1410 ± 701
Controls
(N = 6)
61.5 -± 6.3
20.2 ± 2.5
18.3 ± 3.5
13.0 ± 5.2
106± 12
1.2 ± 0.4
773 ± 206
8.1 ±2.4
98 ± 12
0.8 ± 0.2
1173 ± 269
p Value
NS'
NS
<0.01
<0.01
<0.05
<0.05
<0.05
NS
<0.05
NS
NS
BV/TV = Trabecular bone volume; TbTh = trabecular thickness; TbN = trabecular number; TbSp = trabecular separation.
bHyperplasia group = Leprosy patients with Leydig cell hyperplasia.
'Nonhyperplasia group = Leprosy patients without Leydig cell hyperplasia.
d Control groups = Autopsy cases without leprosy.
eBMI = Body mass index.
'NS = Not statistically significant.
264^International Journal of Leprosy
TABLE 4.
^
2000
Correlation analysis for BV/TVa
at Ctb.
No.
Coefficiency
p Value
BV/TV vs age
at death
—0.11
29
0.55
BV/TV vs age
at onset
0.42
29
—0.16
BV/TV vs BMI
29
—0.23
0.22
BV/TV vs testes
weight
0.19
29
0.32
BV/TV vs steroid
usage
18
0.09
0.73
BV/TV = Bone volume as the percent trabecular
area in medullary bone.
Ct = Near the cortex.
ent in the testicular tubules of 10 leprosy
patients; the other 19 showed no sperm
within the atrophied tubules or totally
scarred testes. There were no significant
differences in BV/TV between patients
with and without sperm. Histologically, the
four pituitary glands studied (Cases 16, 23,
25, 26) showed no hyperplasia of the basophilic cells which secrete interstitial cell
(Leydig cell) stimulating hormone.
DISCUSSION
Only a few studies have analyzed the
histomorphometry at the iliac bone in men
(3-5. 13), and only Jackson, et al. reported
bone histomorphometry in hypogonadal
men (l3). None of these studies gave pathological descriptions of testicular atrophy.
According to our data, BV/TV, TbTh, TbN,
and TbSp ali differed significantly at Ct between the types of patients; however, at Cn,
BV/TV (96) C1
25.0
20.0
o
^
15.0 _
10.0 5.0 -
o^
8
^13.0
o
o
o^o
-8- 12.2
o
O
•p<0.01
174
control hyperplania non-hyperplasia
FIG. 4. Correlation analysis for BV/TV near the
cortex (Ct) in the hyperplasia, nonhyperplasia, and
control groups.
4
m.Sit
Fio. 5. Immunohistochemical staining of hyperplasic Leydig cells in testicular tissue from the hyperplasia group. Note that testosterone is clearly positive
(ABC x400).
only TbTh differed. The Ct area tended to be
more sensitive to hormonal change than did
the Cn atra. BV/TV at Ct in the nonhyperplasia group was significantly less than that
in the control group. TbTh at Ct and Cn and
TbN at Ct in the nonhyperplasia group were
significantly less than those in the control
group, and TbSp at Ct was significantly
greater. Chappard, et al. reported that bone
trabecular perforation in corticosteroid therapy patients occurred when BV/TV was
less than 11% (3). In their study, the bone
biopsy was of the iliac crest and undecalcified sections were used. Our method differed from theirs, but our findings agreed.
In our nonhyperplasia group, TbTh was reduced to 100 I.Lm and perforation occurred,
so TbSp was greater and BV/TV was reduced to below 11%. However, it is difficult
to explain how BV/TV, TbTh, TbSp, and
TbN were maintained in the hyperplasia
group comparable with those of the control
1
i
1
1
1
68, 3^Ishikawa, et al.: Leydig Cell Hyperplasia^265
group. Did perforation not occur in the hyperplasia group due to protection from bone
spicular erosion?
Testicular weight was significantly lower
in the leprosy patient groups than it was in
the controls. This is explained by the postinflammatory damage of testes of leprosy
patients. However, testicular weight did not
correlate with BV/TV in our 29 leprosy patients. Leydig cell: eusecreted hormones
may regulate the volume of trabecular
bone, and Leydig cell status rather than testicular weight may be the important factor
influencing bone volume. In other words,
Leydig cell hyperplasia may protect from
osteoporosis in leprosy patients with testicular damage.
No significant correlation was found between BV/TV at Ct and other clinicai factors (age at disease onset, age at death,
BMI, and the steroid hormone therapy) that
might cause the BV/TV to decrease. If
testosterone production is significantly reduced in leprosy patients in their younger
years, bone loss would resemble that of
menopausal women.
We conclude that the osteoporosis of
male leprosy patients is caused by secondary gonadal dysfunction. Our findings
may contribute to understanding the pathogenesis of osteoporosis in male leprosy patients and should support the development
of hormone therapy for leprosy patients as
well as hypogonadal patients without leprOS y (6, 9, 10. 21, 24)
.
SUMMA RY
This study was conducted to determine if
osteoporosis in male leprosy patients is
caused by testicular atrophy. Bone volume
(BV/TV), trabecular number (TbN), trabecular thickness (TbTh), and trabecular separation (TbSp) were measured in two arcas
in decalcified paraffin sections of lumbar
bones from 29 male leprosy and 6 male
nonleprosy autopsy cases. We found significant differences in the average BV/TV
measurements among the 7 patients with
nodular Leydig cell hyperplasia (BV/TV
12.24%) and the 22 patients without hyperplasia (BV/TV 7.35%) and 6 patients without leprosy (BV/TV 12.98%). Bone volume
was maintained in patients with nodular
Leydig cell hyperplasia, and we determined
no clinical factor other than the Leydig cell
hyperplasia that reflected the bone volume.
The osteoporosis of male leprosy patients
was attributed to secondary gonadal dysfunction due to testicular atrophy, and Leydig cell hyperplasia appears to preserve
bone volume.
RESUMEN
Este estudio se realizó para determinar si la osteoporosis en los pacientes masculinos con lepra es causada por atrofia testicular. Se tomaron como muestras
de autopsia, fragmentos de los huesos lumbares de 29
pacientes con lepra y de 9 personas sin lepra. Las
muestras se descalcificaron y procesaron para hacer
cortes en parafina y en los cortes se midieron, el volumen óseo (BV/TV), el número trabecular (TbN), el
grosor trabecular (TbTh), y la separación trabecular
(TbSp) en dos áreas. Se encontraron diferencias significativas en las mediciones promedio dei volumen
óseo entre los siete pacientes con hiperplasia nodular
de las células de Leydig (BV/TV 7.35%) y los 6 pacientes sin lepra (BV/TV 12.98%). El volumen óseo se
mantuvo en los pacientes con hiperplasia nodular de
células de Leydig y no se encontró ningún otro factor
clínico, aparte de la hiperplasia de las células de Leydig, que reflejara el volumen óseo. La osteoporosis de
los pacientes masculinos con lepra se atribuyó a la disfunción gonadal secundaria a la atrofia testicular. La
hiperplasia de las células de Leydig parece preservar el
volumen óseo.
RÉSUMÉ
Cette étude fut mire en ceuvre pour savoir si
l'ostéoporose chez les patients de sexe masculin est
une conséquence de l'atrophie testiculaire. Le volume
osseux (BV/TV), le nombre des travées (TbN),
l'épaisseur des travées (TbTh), ('espace entre les
travées (TbSp) furent mesurés dans deux zones à partir de sections en paraffine déminéralisées d'os des
lombes de 20 cas lépreux et 6 cas non lépreux de sexe
masculin. Nous trouvâmes des différences significatives des mesures moyennes de BV/TV entre les 7 patients présentant une hyperplasie nodulaire des cellules
de Leydig (BV/TV = 12,24%) et les 22 patients sans
hyperplasie (BV/TV = 7,35%) et les 6 patients sans
lèpre (BV/TV 12,98%). Le volume osseux a été maintenu chez les patients présentant une hyperplasie nodulaire des cellules de Leydig et nous n'avons pas trouvé
d'autres facteurs pouvant expliquer ce volume osseux
autre que 1'hyperplasie Leydigienne. L'ostéoporose
des patients hanséniens de sexe masculin fut attribuée
à une dysfonctions gonadique liée à l'atrophie testiculaire, et I'hyperplasie des cellules de Leydig semble
permettre de préserver le volume osseux.
Acknowledgment. We thank Professor T. Nakamura and Dr. H. Tsurugami, School of Medicine, University of Occupational and Environmental Health,
and Assistant Professor K. Yoh, Hyogo College of
266^
International Journal of Leprosy^2000
Medicine, for advice regarding histomorphometric
methods.
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